Device and method for providing notification of occurrence of vehicle accident

ABSTRACT

A device and method are configured to provide a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident when an airbag is deployed. The device acquires an intensity of a signal received from a server for at least one communication medium, transmits a notification including information on an occurrence of an accident to the server when an airbag of a vehicle is deployed, and retransmits the notification based on the intensity of the received signal when the transmission of the notification has failed. When the transmission of the notification including the information on the occurrence of the accident has failed because a wireless network communication is not operating correctly, wireless communication connection may be reattempted the appropriate number of times to increase a success rate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) the benefit of KoreanPatent Application No. 10-2020-0164975, filed in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office on Nov. 30, 2020, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND (a) Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a device and method for providing anotification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident or emergency, moreparticularly, to the device and method for providing the notification ofthe vehicle accident or emergency when an airbag is deployed.

(b) Description of the Related Art

Among existing technologies, one example is an emergency rescue requestand another example is a notification that a vehicle has moved into ashadow area. Further, a device for providing an automatic notificationthat an airbag has been deployed may be provided in a commercialvehicle. In addition, when a connection to a call center for theaccident notification has failed, the connection to the call center isreattempted for a predetermined number of times. However, even when theconnection to the call center is reattempted in various schemes, whenthe number of reattempts is exceeded, the emergency rescue requesteventually fails. In particular, when a connection with a server hasfailed because of a wireless network environment, the emergency rescuerequest may fail.

There is a need for an additional method for providing a notification ofan occurrence of an accident (i.e., to request assistance or rescue) inan emergency situation in which a wireless network environment may bedown or is otherwise not operating correctly as described above, and inwhich the probability of success of a connection is increased.

In addition, there is also a technology for a vehicle location sharingservice. However, because existing systems do not link the vehiclelocation sharing service with the accident occurrence notification, sucha technology would be desirable.

SUMMARY

An aspect of the present disclosure provides a device and method thatprovide a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident oremergency when an airbag is deployed.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a device and methodfor providing a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident oremergency that, when transmission of a notification includinginformation on the occurrence of the accident has failed because offailure of a wireless network communication, reattempt to connect awireless communication the appropriate number of times to increase asuccess rate.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a device and methodfor providing a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident oremergency that attempt to notify the occurrence of the accident invarious methods by linking the accident occurrence notification with avehicle location sharing service.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a device and a methodfor providing a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident oremergency that may effectively cope with the accident by providing anotification of the occurrence of the accident and transmitting anaccident location to different people based on the accident location.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a device and a methodfor providing a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident oremergency that may quickly and conveniently notify acquaintances ofaccident news by sharing a location and transmitting an accidentoccurrence notification to emergency contacts on a contact listregistered in an account of a driver.

The technical problems to be solved by the present inventive concept arenot limited to the aforementioned problems, and any other technicalproblems not mentioned herein will be clearly understood from thefollowing description by those skilled in the art to which the presentdisclosure pertains.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a device for providinga notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident includes acommunication device equipped in the vehicle, wherein the communicationdevice communicates with a server through at least one communicationmedium, and a controller that transmits a notification includinginformation on the occurrence of the accident when an airbag of thevehicle is deployed to the server through the communication device, andretransmits the notification through the communication device based onan intensity of a signal received from the server when the transmissionof the notification has failed.

In one implementation, the communication device may acquire a signal tonoise ratio (SNR) of the signal received from the server for thecommunication medium, and wherein the controller may retransmit thenotification the first number of reattempts through the communicationmedium when the signal to noise ratio exceeds a reference value, andretransmit the notification the second number of reattempts through thecommunication medium when the signal to noise ratio does not exceed thereference value.

In one implementation, the controller may transmit the notificationthrough communication medium of a next priority when transmission of thenotification and retransmission of the notification throughcommunication medium of a specific priority have failed, and retransmitthe notification through the communication medium of the next prioritywhen the transmission of the notification through the communicationmedium of the next priority has failed.

In one implementation, the communication medium may include at least oneof a hyper text transfer protocol (HTTP) connection, a short messageservice (SMS) connection, or a call connection.

In one implementation, the controller may continuously repeattransmission of the notification through a call connection until thetransmission of the notification is successful when the signal to noiseratio exceeds the reference value and the connection is interruptedduring the call while transmitting or retransmitting the notificationthrough the call connection.

In one implementation, the controller may connect a call through acommunication terminal to an organization capable of requesting a rescuewhen the transmission and the retransmission of the notification havefailed, and the vehicle is connected to the communication terminalthrough communication.

In one implementation, the controller may provide a guide notificationincluding at least one of a content indicating that the vehicle hasentered a shadow area or a content of guiding a rescue request through acommunication terminal to a user through the vehicle when the vehiclehas entered a section determined as the shadow area.

In one implementation, the controller may attempt to transmit thenotification through the communication device when the vehicle is out ofthe section determined as the shadow area, and a signal to noise ratioof a signal received from the server for the communication mediumexceeds the reference value.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a device forproviding a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident includesa communication device equipped in the vehicle providing a locationsharing service, wherein the communication device communicates with acommunication terminal capable of sharing a location of the vehicle, anda controller transmits a notification including information on theoccurrence of the accident to a communication terminal sharing thelocation of the vehicle through the communication device when an airbagof the vehicle is deployed and the location sharing service is beingperformed.

In one implementation, the controller may perform the location sharingservice with a specific communication terminal based on an accidentoccurrence area, an accident occurrence time, and a traffic volume, andtransmit the notification including the information on the occurrence ofthe accident to the specific communication terminal when the airbag ofthe vehicle is deployed and the location sharing service is not beingperformed.

In one implementation, the controller may perform the location sharingservice with the specific communication terminal including communicationterminals registered as emergency contacts of a driver of the vehiclethrough a personalized service, and transmit the notification includingthe information on the occurrence of the accident to the specificcommunication terminal when the vehicle provides the personalizedservice.

In one implementation, the controller may perform the location sharingservice with a specific communication terminal including communicationterminals corresponding to the accident occurrence area among thecommunication terminals registered as the emergency contacts, andtransmit the notification including the information on the occurrence ofthe accident to the specific communication terminal when thecommunication terminals registered as the emergency contacts areregistered in a manner of being classified based on the accidentoccurrence area.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method forproviding a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident includesacquiring an intensity of a signal received from a server for at leastone communication medium, transmitting a notification includinginformation on the occurrence of the accident to the server when anairbag of the vehicle is deployed, and retransmitting the notificationbased on the intensity of the received signal when the transmission ofthe notification has failed.

In one implementation, the acquiring of the intensity of the signalreceived from the server for the at least one communication medium mayinclude acquiring a signal to noise ratio of the signal received fromthe server for the communication medium, and the retransmitting of thenotification based on the intensity of the received signal when thetransmission of the notification has failed may include retransmittingthe notification the first number of reattempts through thecommunication medium when the signal to noise ratio exceeds a referencevalue, and retransmitting the notification the second number ofreattempts through the communication medium when the signal to noiseratio does not exceed the reference value.

In one implementation, the communication medium may include at least oneof a HTTP connection, a SMS connection, or a call connection, and theretransmitting of the notification based on the intensity of thereceived signal when the transmission of the notification has failed mayfurther include continuously repeating transmission of the notificationthrough the call connection until the transmission of the notificationis successful when the signal to noise ratio exceeds the reference valueand the connection is interrupted during the call while transmitting orretransmitting the notification through the call connection.

In one implementation, the method may further include connecting a callthrough a communication terminal to an organization capable ofrequesting a rescue when the transmission and the retransmission of thenotification have failed, and the vehicle is connected to thecommunication terminal through communication.

In one implementation, the method may further include providing a guidenotification including at least one of a content indicating that thevehicle has entered a shadow area or a content of guiding a rescuerequest through a communication terminal to a user through the vehiclewhen the vehicle has entered a section determined as the shadow area.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method forproviding a notification of an occurrence of a vehicle accident includesdetermining whether a location sharing service of the vehicle is beingperformed, and transmitting a notification including information on theoccurrence of the accident to a communication terminal sharing thelocation of the vehicle when an airbag of the vehicle is deployed andthe location sharing service is being performed.

In one implementation, the method may further include performing thelocation sharing service with a specific communication terminal based onan accident occurrence area, an accident occurrence time, and a trafficvolume, and transmitting the notification including the information onthe occurrence of the accident to the specific communication terminalwhen the airbag of the vehicle is deployed and the location sharingservice is not being performed.

In one implementation, the performing of the location sharing servicewith the specific communication terminal, and the transmitting of thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the specific communication terminal may include performing thelocation sharing service with the specific communication terminalincluding communication terminals registered as emergency contacts of adriver of the vehicle through a personalized service, and transmittingthe notification including the information on the occurrence of theaccident to the specific communication terminal when the vehicleprovides the personalized service.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will be more apparent from the following detailed descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system including avehicle accident occurrence notification device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating operations of a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification system according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C are diagrams illustrating a process ofretransmitting an accident occurrence notification by a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process in which a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure operates when a vehicle enters a shadow area;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are flowcharts illustrating a process operating when avehicle accident occurrence notification device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure provides a location sharingservice;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification method according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure; and

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification method according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is understood that the term “vehicle” or “vehicular” or other similarterm as used herein is inclusive of motor vehicles in general such aspassenger automobiles including sports utility vehicles (SUV), buses,trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including a variety ofboats and ships, aircraft, and the like, and includes hybrid vehicles,electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen-poweredvehicles and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g. fuels derived fromresources other than petroleum). As referred to herein, a hybrid vehicleis a vehicle that has two or more sources of power, for example bothgasoline-powered and electric-powered vehicles.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure.As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or”includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associatedlisted items. Throughout the specification, unless explicitly describedto the contrary, the word “comprise” and variations such as “comprises”or “comprising” will be understood to imply the inclusion of statedelements but not the exclusion of any other elements. In addition, theterms “unit”, “-er”, “-or”, and “module” described in the specificationmean units for processing at least one function and operation, and canbe implemented by hardware components or software components andcombinations thereof.

Further, the control logic of the present disclosure may be embodied asnon-transitory computer readable media on a computer readable mediumcontaining executable program instructions executed by a processor,controller or the like. Examples of computer readable media include, butare not limited to, ROM, RAM, compact disc (CD)-ROMs, magnetic tapes,floppy disks, flash drives, smart cards and optical data storagedevices. The computer readable medium can also be distributed in networkcoupled computer systems so that the computer readable media is storedand executed in a distributed fashion, e.g., by a telematics server or aController Area Network (CAN).

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed in detail with reference to the exemplary drawings. In addingthe reference numerals to the components of each drawing, it should benoted that the identical or equivalent component is designated by theidentical numeral even when they are displayed on other drawings.Further, in describing the embodiment of the present disclosure, adetailed description of the related known configuration or function willbe omitted when it is determined that it interferes with theunderstanding of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

In describing the components of the embodiment according to the presentdisclosure, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), and the likemay be used. These terms are merely intended to distinguish thecomponents from other components, and the terms do not limit the nature,order or sequence of the components. Unless otherwise defined, all termsincluding technical and scientific terms used herein have the samemeaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art towhich this disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that terms,such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should beinterpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning inthe context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in anidealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described indetail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8 .

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a vehicle accident occurrence notification device100 may be implemented by including a communication device 110 and acontroller 120.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may beimplemented integrally with a vehicle, may be implemented in a form ofbeing installed in/attached to the vehicle as a component separate fromthe vehicle, or some of components thereof may be implemented integrallywith the vehicle and the remaining components thereof may be implementedin a form of being installed in/attached to the vehicle as componentsseparate from the vehicle.

For example, the vehicle equipped with the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may have an airbag and a system for transmittinginformation including an occurrence of an accident when the airbag isdeployed.

The communication device 110 may be equipped in the vehicle, andcommunicate with a server through a communication medium.

For example, the communication device 110 may transmit situationinformation and the like to the outside by communicating with theexternal server. The communication device 110 may transmit and receivedata using various communication schemes. For example, the communicationdevice 110 may be connected through a Wi-Fi direct communication.According to an embodiment, schemes such as a Wi-Fi, a wirelessbroadband (Wibro), a world interoperability for microwave access(Wimax), a Bluetooth, a radio frequency identification (RFID), aninfrared communication (IrDA, infrared data association), a Zigbee, anultra-wide band (UWB) communication, a near field communication (NFC),and the like may be used.

For example, the communication device 110 may communicate with theserver through a communication medium including at least one of a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) connection, a short message service (SMS)connection, or a call connection.

The communication device 110 may acquire, for the communication medium,a signal to noise ratio (SNR) of a signal received from the server.

For example, the communication device 110 may detect a magnitude of thesignal and a magnitude of a noise received from the server, and thesignal to noise ratio may be calculated through the magnitude of thesignal and the magnitude of the noise acquired from the communicationdevice 110.

The communication device 110 may be directly or indirectly connected tothe controller 120 through a wireless or wired communication.

For example, the communication device 110 may transmit information onthe signal to noise ratio to the controller 120.

For example, the communication device 110 may receive a command from thecontroller 120 and transmit the command to the server, and inparticular, may transmit a notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident.

When the airbag of the vehicle is deployed, the controller 120 maytransmit the notification including the information on the occurrence ofthe accident to the server through the communication device 110, andretransmit the notification through the communication device 110 basedon an intensity of the signal received from the server when thetransmission of the notification has failed.

The controller 120 may perform overall control such that each componentmay normally perform a function thereof. Such controller 120 may beimplemented in the form of hardware, software, or a combination ofhardware and software. Preferably, the controller 120 may be implementedas a microprocessor, but may not be limited thereto. In addition, thecontroller 120 may perform various data processing, calculations, andthe like to be described later.

The controller 120 may be directly or indirectly connected to thecommunication device 110 through the wireless or wired communication.

For example, the controller 120 may receive the information on thesignal to noise ratio from the communication device 110.

For example, the controller 120 may transmit the command to thecommunication device 110 to transmit data to the server through thecommunication device 110.

The controller 120 may be directly or indirectly connected to the airbagor an airbag control unit (ACU) of the vehicle through the wireless orwired communication.

For example, when the airbag is deployed, the controller 120 may receiveinformation indicating that the airbag has been deployed through theairbag or the ACU of the vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system including avehicle accident occurrence notification device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

A vehicle accident occurrence notification system may include a vehicle210, a server 220, and a communication terminal 230.

The vehicle 210 may include a connected car terminal.

The vehicle 210 may be implemented by including an audio, video,navigation, telematics (AVNT) terminal.

The vehicle 210 may be implemented by being connected to an in-vehicleaccident occurrence sensing device, and receive information on anoccurrence of an accident in the vehicle from the in-vehicle accidentoccurrence sensing device.

For example, the in-vehicle accident occurrence sensing device mayinclude at least one of an airbag module or an ACU 211.

For example, the vehicle 210 may be implemented by including the ACU211.

For example, the vehicle 210 may acquire information indicating that anairbag of the vehicle 210 has been deployed through the ACU 211.

The ACU 211 may control the airbag of the vehicle, receive informationon an impact sensed by a collision sensor equipped in the vehicle todetermine whether to deploy the airbag, and output a command to deploythe airbag to deploy the airbag.

For example, the ACU 211 may transmit information on whether the airbagis deployed to the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100.

The vehicle 210 may transmit and receive information to and from theserver 220 through the wireless communication.

For example, the vehicle 210 may communicate with the server 220 throughthe communication device 110 of the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100.

The server 220 may communicate with a plurality of vehicles andcommunication terminals, and may manage a connected car service overall.

For example, the server 220 may include a server of a connected carservice center.

The communication terminal 230 may transmit and receive information toand from the server 220 through the wireless communication.

For example, the communication terminal 230 may include a smart phone,and manage the vehicle 210 through the communication with the server220.

For example, the communication terminal 230 may be storing informationon emergency contacts of a personalized account, and may directly orindirectly transmit the information on the emergency contacts to atleast one of the server 220 or the vehicle 210 through thecommunication.

A basic operation of a function of automatically providing anotification of the occurrence of the accident when the airbag isdeployed of the vehicle accident occurrence notification system will bedescribed as follows.

When the airbag of the vehicle 210 is deployed, the ACU 211 may transmitthe information indicating that the airbag has been deployed to thevehicle 210.

In addition, the vehicle 210 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to the server 220 througha HTTP communication or a packet communication.

For example, the vehicle 210 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to the server 220 throughthe HTTP communication or the packet communication of the communicationdevice 110.

Thereafter, the vehicle 210 may receive a response signal (ACK,Acknowledgement) from the server 220.

For example, the vehicle 210 may receive the response signal from theserver 220 through the communication device 110. In this process, theinformation on the signal to noise ratio of the signal received from theserver may be acquired.

When the transmission of the notification including the information onthe occurrence of the accident through the HTTP communication or thepacket communication has failed, the vehicle 210 may transmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentthrough the SMS communication or a circuit communication.

When the transmission of the notification including the information onthe occurrence of the accident through the SMS communication or thecircuit communication has failed, the vehicle 210 may transmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentthrough the call connection.

For example, the vehicle 210 may transmit a content including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident through the callconnection to an emergency rescue center.

For example, when the call connection has failed, the vehicle 210 maycontinuously reattempt to connect the call for 3 minutes.

In this connection, the time of 3 minutes is a value arbitrarilydetermined for illustration purposes. The time may actually be set to bea different value or may be set to have a different value based on acondition.

For example, when the connection is interrupted during the callconnection, the emergency rescue center may attempt to connect the callto the vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating operations of a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification system according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example in a situation in whichdeployment of an airbag of a vehicle providing a location sharingservice has occurred.

First, a vehicle 310 may start a location sharing service through acommunication with a server 320 (S301).

For example, the vehicle 310 may acquire a location of the vehicle 310through a location determination device such as a global positioningsystem (GPS), and transmit the location of the vehicle 310 to the server320 through the wireless communication.

Thereafter, the server 320 may share the location of the vehicle 310through a communication with a communication terminal 330 (S302).

For example, the server 320 may transmit information on the location ofthe vehicle 310 to the communication terminal 330 set as a target of thelocation sharing service in advance.

For example, the communication terminal 330 may include at least one ofa smart phone set as a location sharing target of the vehicle 310 or avehicle set as the location sharing target of the vehicle 310.

Thereafter, the vehicle 310 may be in a situation in which the airbag isdeployed because of the occurrence of the accident (S303).

For example, when the accident occurs and the impact occurs in thevehicle 310, the ACU of the vehicle may deploy the airbag and thevehicle 310 may identify the information indicating that the airbag hasbeen deployed through the ACU.

Thereafter, the vehicle 310 may transmit and retransmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver 320 (S304).

For example, the vehicle 310 may identify the information on theoccurrence of the accident through the information indicating that theairbag has been deployed through the ACU.

For example, when the airbag is deployed, the vehicle 310 may transmitthe notification including the information on the occurrence of theaccident to the server 320.

For example, when a response signal is not received from the server 320after transmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server 320, the vehicle 310 mayretransmit the notification including the information on the occurrenceof the accident to the server 320.

A process of S304 will be described in detail in FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C.

Thereafter, the vehicle 310 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to the communicationterminal 330 (S305).

For example, the vehicle 310 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to the communicationterminal 330 in which the location sharing service is being performed.

FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C are diagrams illustrating a process ofretransmitting an accident occurrence notification by a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may receive anairbag deployment signal from the ACU (S401).

After receiving the airbag deployment signal from the ACU, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may transmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the server through the HTTP connection (S402).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maytransmit the notification including the information on the occurrence ofthe accident to the server through the HTTP connection or the packetcommunication.

For example, the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident may include information on an accidentoccurrence location.

After transmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server through the HTTP connection,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a HTTPconnection channel exceeds a reference value (S403).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayacquire a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a channelcorresponding to the HTTP connection or the packet communication throughthe communication device 110, and determine whether the acquired signalto noise ratio exceeds a reference value for the HTTP connection or thepacket communication stored in advance in a memory.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine the number of attempts for retransmitting the notificationbased on whether the signal to noise ratio of the channel correspondingto the HTTP connection or the packet communication exceeds the referencevalue.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayretransmit the notification the first number of reattempts through theHTTP connection or the packet communication when the signal to noiseratio of the channel corresponding to the H 11′P connection or thepacket communication exceeds the reference value, and retransmit thenotification the second number of reattempts when the signal to noiseratio of the channel corresponding to the HTTP connection or the packetcommunication does not exceed the reference value.

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the HTTPconnection channel exceeds the reference value, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may retransmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver up to 3 times through the HTTP connection (S404).

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the HTTPconnection channel does not exceed the reference value, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may retransmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the server up to once through the HTTP connection (S405).

After retransmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server through the HTTP connection,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the HTTP connection has failed (S406).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the HTTP connection has failed through the responsesignal received from the server.

When the HTTP connection has failed, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to the server through theSMS connection (S407).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maytransmit the notification including the information on the occurrence ofthe accident to the server through the SMS connection or the circuitcommunication.

After transmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server through the SMS connection, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a SMS connectionchannel exceeds a reference value (S408).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayacquire a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a channelcorresponding to the SMS connection or the circuit communication throughthe communication device 110, and determine whether the acquired signalto noise ratio exceeds a reference value for the SMS connection or thecircuit communication stored in advance in the memory.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine the number of attempts for retransmitting the notificationbased on whether the signal to noise ratio of the channel correspondingto the SMS connection or the circuit communication exceeds the referencevalue.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayretransmit the notification the first number of reattempts through theSMS connection or the circuit communication when the signal to noiseratio of the channel corresponding to the SMS connection or the circuitcommunication exceeds the reference value, and retransmit thenotification the second number of reattempts through the SMS connectionor the circuit communication when the signal to noise ratio of thechannel corresponding to the SMS connection or the circuit communicationdoes not exceed the reference value.

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the SMSconnection channel exceeds the reference value, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may retransmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver up to 3 times through the SMS connection (S409).

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the SMSconnection channel does not exceed the reference value, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may retransmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the server up to once through the SMS connection (S410).

After retransmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server through the SMS connection, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the SMS connection has failed (S411).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the SMS connection has failed through the responsesignal received from the server.

When the SMS connection has failed, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may transmit the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident through the callconnection to the server (S412).

After transmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident through the call connection to the server,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a callconnection channel exceeds a reference value (S413).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayacquire a signal to noise ratio of a received signal of a channelcorresponding to the call connection through the communication device110, and determine whether the acquired signal to noise ratio exceeds areference value for the call connection stored in advance in the memory.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine the number of attempts for retransmitting the notificationbased on whether the signal to noise ratio of the channel correspondingto the call connection exceeds the reference value.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayretransmit the notification the first number of reattempts through thecall connection when the signal to noise ratio of the channelcorresponding to the call connection exceeds the reference value, andretransmit the notification the second number of reattempts through thecall connection when the signal to noise ratio of the channelcorresponding to the call connection does not exceed the referencevalue.

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the callconnection channel exceeds the reference value, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may retransmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver up to 3 times through the call connection (S414).

When the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the callconnection channel does not exceed the reference value, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may retransmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the server up to once through the call connection (S415).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100retransmits the notification the first number of reattempts as 3 and thesecond number of reattempts as 1, where the numbers of reattempts arearbitrarily determined for purposes of illustration, and are actuallyable to be set to different values.

For example, the first number of reattempts and the second number ofreattempts may be set to different values based on the communicationmedium such as the HTTP connection, the SMS connection, or the callconnection.

For example, the reference values for comparing the signal to noiseratio may be set to different values based on the communication mediumsuch as the HTTP connection, the SMS connection, or the call connection.

In addition, when the signal to noise ratio of the received signalexceeds the reference value, it may be determined that an intensity ofthe received signal is good. Accordingly, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may set the first number ofreattempts to be larger than the second number of reattempts, and mayreattempt to connect the call the greater number of times to increase aprobability of a successful connection when the intensity of thereceived signal is good.

For example, when transmission of the notification and retransmission ofthe notification through communication medium of a specific priorityhave failed, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maytransmit the notification through communication medium of a nextpriority, and retransmit the notification through communication mediumof the next priority when the transmission of the notification throughthe communication medium of the next priority has failed.

According to the illustrated example, the transmission of thenotification is performed in an order of the HTTP connection, the SMSconnection, and the call connection, but the order may be changedaccording to an embodiment.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the call connection has failed after retransmitting thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the server through the call connection (S416).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the call connection has failed through the responsesignal received from the server.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the connection has been interrupted during the call when thecall connection has failed (S417).

When the connection has been interrupted during the call, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may repeat the transmissionof the notification including the information on the occurrence of theaccident to the server through the call connection until thenotification transmission is successful (S418).

For example, when the connection has been interrupted during the call,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the signal to noise ratio of the call connection channel exceedsthe reference value, and repeat the transmission of the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver through the call connection until the notification transmissionis successful when the signal to noise ratio of the call connectionchannel exceeds the reference value and a state of the communication isat a level at which the call is possible.

When the connection has not been interrupted during the call, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the vehicle is in connection with the communication terminalthrough the communication (S419).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the AVNT of the vehicle is in direct connection withthe communication terminal through at least one of a Bluetooth, anAndroid Auto, or a CarPlay.

When the vehicle is in connection with the communication terminalthrough the communication, the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may perform the call connection through the communicationterminal to an organization capable of requesting a rescue (S420).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayperform the call connection to the organization capable of requestingthe rescue including the emergency rescue center or a 119 safety reportcenter through the communication terminal in connection with thevehicle.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maytransmit information on a phone number of the organization capable ofrequesting the rescue from the vehicle to the communication terminal toperform the call connection to the organization capable of requestingthe rescue through the communication terminal.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process in which a vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure operates when a vehicle enters a shadow area.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may receive theairbag deployment signal from the ACU (S501).

After receiving the airbag deployment signal from the ACU, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may determine whether thevehicle has entered a shadow area (S502).

For example, when a communication with the server through a telematicsservice including at least one of a Bluelink, a UVO, or a Genesisconnected service is not performed smoothly, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may determine that the vehicle hasentered the shadow area.

For example, when the communication with the server is not smoothlyperformed for at least one of the channels respectively corresponding tothe HTTP connection, the SMS connection, and the call connection, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determine thatthe vehicle has entered the shadow area.

When the vehicle has entered the shadow area, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may provide a guide notificationincluding at least one of a content indicating that the vehicle hasentered the shadow area or a content for guiding a rescue requestthrough the communication terminal to the user (S503).

By receiving the guide notification including at least one of thecontent indicating that the vehicle has entered the shadow area or thecontent for guiding the rescue request through the communicationterminal, a driver may anticipate that the accident occurrencenotification will not be transmitted automatically in an accidentsituation, and directly notify the outside of the occurrence of theaccident and request the rescue through a communication terminal of thedriver.

After providing the guide notification including at least one of thecontent indicating that the vehicle has entered the shadow area or thecontent for guiding the rescue request to the user through thecommunication terminal, the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may determine whether the vehicle is out of the shadow area(S504).

For example, when the communication with the server through thetelematics service including at least one of the Bluelink, the UVO, orthe Genesis connected service is performed smoothly, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may determine that thevehicle is out of the shadow area.

For example, when the communication with the server is smoothlyperformed for at least one of the channels respectively corresponding tothe HTTP connection, the SMS connection, and the call connection, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determine thatthe vehicle is out of the shadow area.

When the vehicle is out of the shadow area, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may determine whether the signal tonoise ratio of the signal received from the server exceeds the referencevalue (S505).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayacquire the signal to noise ratio of the received signal of the channelthrough the communication device 110, and determine whether the acquiredsignal to noise ratio exceeds the reference value stored in advance inthe memory.

When the signal to noise ratio of the signal received from the serverexceeds the reference value, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may attempt to perform communication connectionwith the server (S506).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayperform the process of automatically transmitting the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to theserver again through the communication connection with the server.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayprovide a notification indicating that the vehicle is out of the shadowarea to the driver.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are flowcharts illustrating a process operating when avehicle accident occurrence notification device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure provides a location sharingservice.

The vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may receive theairbag deployment signal from the ACU (S601).

After receiving the airbag deployment signal from the ACU, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may determine whether thelocation sharing service of the vehicle is being performed (S602).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether a location of the vehicle is being shared by 1:1 or1:N, and identify information on communication terminals sharing thelocation of the vehicle when the vehicle location is being shared.

Although not shown, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device100 may first determine whether the location sharing service of thevehicle is being performed, and then receive the airbag deploymentsignal from the ACU. Alternatively, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may receive the airbag deployment signal fromthe ACU while determining whether the location sharing service of thevehicle is being performed at the same time.

When the location sharing service of the vehicle is being performed, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may transmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the communication terminal currently sharing the location of thevehicle (S603).

The notification including the information on the occurrence of theaccident may include an accident occurrence time, the location, adestination, information on the number of occupants, a content ofrequesting the rescue, and the like.

For example, when the airbag of the vehicle is deployed and the locationsharing service is not being performed, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may perform the location sharing service with aspecific communication terminal based on an area where the accident hasoccurred, the time when the accident has occurred, and a traffic volume,and transmit the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the specific communication terminal.

When the location sharing service of the vehicle is not being performed,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether the area where the accident of the vehicle has occurred is anurban/residential area (S604).

In this connection, the urban/residential area is only an example of anarea where it is possible to quickly recognize the accident in thevicinity and offer help. In practice, the urban/residential area may beset to another area determined where it is possible to quickly recognizethe accident in the vicinity and offer the help.

When the area where the accident of the vehicle has occurred is theurban/residential area, the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may not perform the sharing of the location of the vehicleand the transmission of the notification including the information onthe occurrence of the accident (S605).

For example, when the area where the accident of the vehicle hasoccurred is the urban/residential area, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may identify that the accident may be quicklyrecognized in the vicinity at the nearby area and the help may beoffered from the nearby area, thereby determining that it is notnecessary to notify the occurrence of the accident and request the helpto the outside, and not performing the sharing of the location of thevehicle and the transmission of the notification including theinformation on the occurrence of the accident.

When the area where the accident of the vehicle has occurred is not theurban/residential area, the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may determine whether the area where the accident of thevehicle has occurred is an expressway/vehicle-only road (S606).

In this connection, the expressway/vehicle-only road is only an exampleof an area where it is possible to recognize the accident in thevicinity, but it is difficult to offer help because of difficult access.In practice, the expressway/vehicle-only road may be set to another areawhere it is possible to recognize the accident in the vicinity, but itis difficult to offer the help because of the difficult access.

When the area where the accident of the vehicle has occurred is theexpressway/vehicle-only road, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may determine whether the accident has occurredin the daytime (S607).

For example, when the accident has not occurred in the daytime, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determine thatthe traffic volume is not high, thereby identifying the accidentoccurrence time.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the accident has occurred at a time at which it isdetermined that it is difficult to offer the help because of a hightraffic volume even when the accident has not occurred in the daytime.

When the accident has occurred in the daytime, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may determine whether a real-timetraffic condition of the area where the accident has occurred isdetermined to be tied up, slow, or congested (S608).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the real-time traffic condition is determined to betied up, slow, or congested through the communication with the serverthat identifies a real-time traffic volume.

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maydetermine whether the real-time traffic condition is determined to betied up, slow, or congested using a method for determining the trafficvolume using an image or the like of a region around the vehicle.

When the real-time traffic condition of the area where the accident hasoccurred is determined to be tied up, slow, or congested, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may not perform the sharingof the location of the vehicle and the transmission of the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident (S605).

For example, when the real-time traffic condition of the area where theaccident has occurred is determined to be tied up, slow, or congested,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may identify acurrent situation as a situation capable of accessing the accidentvehicle and offering the help, and not perform the sharing of thelocation of the vehicle and the transmission of the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident.

When the real-time traffic condition of the accident occurrence area isnot determined to be tied up, slow, or congested, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may determine whether the vehicleprovides a personalized service for the driver (S610).

When the area where the accident of the vehicle has occurred is not theexpressway/vehicle-only road, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may determine that the area where the accidentof the vehicle has occurred is a non-residential area (a farmland/amountain/an island, and the like) (S609).

For example, when the area where the accident of the vehicle hasoccurred is not the expressway/vehicle-only road, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may determine that the area where theaccident of the vehicle has occurred is an area where it is difficult torecognize the accident in the vicinity, such as the farmland, themountain, the islands, and the like.

After determining that the area where the accident of the vehicle hasoccurred is the non-residential area (the farmland/the mountain/theisland and the like), the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may determine whether the vehicle provides the personalizedservice for the driver (S610).

When the vehicle does not provide the personalized service for thedriver, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 maytransmit the notification including the location of the vehicle and theinformation on the occurrence of the accident to communication terminalscorresponding to emergency contacts registered in a personalized serviceof another user (S611).

For example, when the personalized service for the driver of the vehicleis provided in the event of the accident, and thus, it is able to knowinformation on emergency contacts registered by the driver in advance,the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may share theinformation to the emergency contacts of the driver. However, when thepersonalized service for the driver of the vehicle is not provided inthe event of the accident, because the information is not able to beshared with the emergency contacts of the driver, the vehicle accidentoccurrence notification device 100 may transmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident throughemergency contacts of another driver for whom a personalized service isprovided for the accident vehicle.

When the vehicle provides the personalized service for the driver, thevehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 may determinewhether communication terminals registered as the emergency contacts areregistered in a manner of being classified based on the area where theaccident has occurred (S612).

When the communication terminals registered as the emergency contactsare not registered in the manner of being classified based on the areawhere the accident has occurred, the vehicle accident occurrencenotification device 100 may transmit the notification including thelocation of the vehicle and the information on the occurrence of theaccident to the communication terminals corresponding to the emergencycontacts registered in the personalized service of the driver (S613).

For example, the vehicle accident occurrence notification device 100 mayefficiently notify the occurrence of the accident and cope with theaccident by sharing the location of the vehicle and transmitting thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto a target that should receive the information on the occurrence of theaccident first when the accident occurs specified by the driver inadvance.

When the communication terminals registered as the emergency contactsare registered in the manner of being classified based on the area wherethe accident has occurred, the vehicle accident occurrence notificationdevice 100 may transmit the notification including the location of thevehicle and the information on the occurrence of the accident tocommunication terminals corresponding to emergency contactscorresponding to the area where the accident has occurred (S614).

For example, by transmitting the notification including the location ofthe vehicle and the information on the occurrence of the accident to thecommunication terminals corresponding to the emergency contactscorresponding to the area where the accident has occurred, the vehicleaccident occurrence notification device 100 may not transmit thenotification to a target incapable of taking an action even whenreceiving the information on the occurrence of the accident because of along distance.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification method according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 7 , a method for providing a notification of a vehicleemergency may include acquiring the intensity of the signal receivedfrom the server for at least one communication medium (S710),transmitting the notification including the information on theoccurrence of the accident to the server when the vehicle airbag isdeployed (S720), and retransmitting the notification based on theintensity of the received signal when the transmission of thenotification has failed (S730).

For example, the acquiring of the intensity of the signal received fromthe server for at least one communication medium (S710) may includeacquiring the signal to noise ratio of the signal received from theserver for the communication medium.

For example, the retransmitting of the notification based on theintensity of the received signal when the transmission of thenotification has failed (S730) may include retransmitting thenotification the first number of reattempts through the communicationmedium when the signal to noise ratio exceeds the reference value, andretransmitting the notification the second number of reattempts throughthe communication medium when the signal to noise ratio does not exceedthe reference value.

For example, the retransmitting of the notification based on theintensity of the received signal when the transmission of thenotification has failed (S730) may include continuously repeating thetransmission of the notification through the call connection until thetransmission of the notification is successful when the signal to noiseratio exceeds the reference value and the connection is interruptedduring the call in the process of transmitting or retransmitting thenotification through the call connection.

Although not shown, the vehicle accident occurrence notification methodmay further include connecting the call through the communicationterminal to the organization capable of requesting the rescue when thetransmission and the retransmission of the notification have failed andthe vehicle is connected to the communication terminal through thecommunication.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a vehicle accident occurrencenotification method according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 8 , a method for providing a notification of a vehicleaccident may include determining whether the vehicle location sharingservice is being performed (S810), and transmitting the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to thecommunication terminal sharing the location of the vehicle when thevehicle airbag is deployed and the location sharing service is beingperformed (S820).

Although not shown, the vehicle accident occurrence notification methodmay further include performing the location sharing service with thespecific communication terminal based on the area where the accident hasoccurred, the time when the accident has occurred, and the trafficvolume, and transmitting the notification including the information onthe occurrence of the accident to the specific communication terminalwhen the airbag of the vehicle is deployed and the location sharingservice is not being performed.

For example, the performing of the location sharing service with thespecific communication terminal, and the transmitting of thenotification indicating that the accident has occurred to the specificcommunication terminal may include performing the location sharingservice with the specific communication terminal including thecommunication terminals registered as the emergency contacts of thedriver of the vehicle through the personalized service when the vehicleprovides the personalized service, and transmitting the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to thespecific communication terminal.

The description above is merely illustrative of the technical idea ofthe present disclosure, and various modifications and changes may bemade by those skilled in the art without departing from the essentialcharacteristics of the present disclosure.

Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present disclosure are notintended to limit the technical idea of the present disclosure but toillustrate the present disclosure, and the scope of the technical ideaof the present disclosure is not limited by the embodiments. The scopeof the present disclosure should be construed as being covered by thescope of the appended claims, and all technical ideas falling within thescope of the claims should be construed as being included in the scopeof the present disclosure.

Effects of the device and the method for providing a notification of theoccurrence of the emergency accident of the vehicle according to thepresent disclosure will be described as follows.

According to at least one of the embodiments of the present disclosure,the device and the method for providing a notification of the occurrenceof the emergency accident of the vehicle that, when the transmission ofthe notification including the information on the occurrence of theaccident has failed because the wireless network communication is notoperating correctly, reattempt to connect the wireless communication theappropriate number of times to increase the success rate may beprovided.

In addition, according to at least one of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the device and the method for providing a notification ofthe occurrence of the emergency accident of the vehicle that attempt tonotify the occurrence of the accident in the various methods by linkingthe accident occurrence notification with the vehicle location sharingservice may be provided.

In addition, according to at least one of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the device and the method for providing a notification ofthe occurrence of the emergency accident of the vehicle that mayeffectively cope with the accident by providing a notification of theoccurrence of the accident and transmitting the accident location to thedifferent people based on the accident location may be provided.

In addition, according to at least one of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the device and the method for providing a notification ofthe occurrence of the emergency accident of the vehicle that may quicklyand conveniently notify the acquaintances of the accident news bysharing the location and transmitting the accident occurrencenotification to the emergency contacts on the contact list registered inthe account of the driver may be provided.

In addition, various effects that are directly or indirectly identifiedthrough this document may be provided.

Hereinabove, although the present disclosure has been described withreference to exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings, thepresent disclosure is not limited thereto, but may be variously modifiedand altered by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosurepertains without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure claimed in the following claims.

1-8. (canceled)
 9. A device for providing a notification of anoccurrence of a vehicle accident, the device comprising: a communicationdevice equipped in a vehicle providing a location sharing service,wherein the communication device is configured to communicate with acommunication terminal capable of sharing a location of the vehicle; anda controller configured to transmit a notification including informationon the occurrence of the accident to a communication terminal sharingthe location of the vehicle through the communication device when anairbag of the vehicle is deployed and the location sharing service isbeing performed.
 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the controller isconfigured to perform the location sharing service with a specificcommunication terminal based on an accident occurrence area, an accidentoccurrence time, and a traffic volume, and transmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to thespecific communication terminal when the airbag of the vehicle isdeployed and the location sharing service is not being performed. 11.The device of claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to performthe location sharing service with the specific communication terminalincluding communication terminals registered as emergency contacts of adriver of the vehicle through a personalized service, and transmit thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the specific communication terminal when the vehicle provides thepersonalized service.
 12. The device of claim 11, wherein the controlleris configured to perform the location sharing service with a specificcommunication terminal including communication terminals correspondingto the accident occurrence area among the communication terminalsregistered as the emergency contacts, and transmit the notificationincluding the information on the occurrence of the accident to thespecific communication terminal when the communication terminalsregistered as the emergency contacts are registered in a manner of beingclassified based on the accident occurrence area. 13.-17. (canceled) 18.A method for providing a notification of an occurrence of a vehicleaccident, the method comprising: determining whether a location sharingservice of a vehicle is being performed; and transmitting a notificationincluding information on the occurrence of the accident to acommunication terminal sharing the location of the vehicle when anairbag of the vehicle is deployed and the location sharing service isbeing performed.
 19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:performing the location sharing service with a specific communicationterminal based on an accident occurrence area, an accident occurrencetime, and a traffic volume, and transmitting the notification includingthe information on the occurrence of the accident to the specificcommunication terminal when the airbag of the vehicle is deployed andthe location sharing service is not being performed.
 20. The method ofclaim 19, wherein performing the location sharing service with thespecific communication terminal, and the transmitting of thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the specific communication terminal includes: performing the locationsharing service with the specific communication terminal includingcommunication terminals registered as emergency contacts of a driver ofthe vehicle through a personalized service, and transmitting thenotification including the information on the occurrence of the accidentto the specific communication terminal when the vehicle provides thepersonalized service.